Just For Kids

This sticky is for you all to share the hunt of "YOUR" lifetime with the rest of us.
Lets see some pics and hear some stories from your kids hunts.
Only one rule it is that it be kids (yours and/or others) that you took hunting.

We've all been in the marsh and seen the impressive first morning flight. However, yesterday's youth opener at Bob Brown Conservation Area was truly once in a lifetime.

As we motored out into the pool late, we witnessed a morning flight like I had never seen. The birds covered the sky in a single sheet, like one massive group of birds. They were very high and it looked like ants crawling across the sky as far as you could see. I noticed that my brother couldn't keep his eyes off of them the whole boat ride.

I'd taken him out to the skeet field the day before, yet the first two birds that came in he shot at and missed. I told him to calm down as he has all the time he needs, that I wouldn't tell him to shoot unless I felt confident that he could hit the duck. Next thing you know, two mallards come in, I tell him to shoot the one on the right...of course he shoots the hen on the left. I didn't scold him, I was just glad he'd shot a duck. His confidence renewed, all we had to do was wait for more ducks.

Not much later, the cold front came in, and with it some light rain. We could hear people's decoys banging together as they packed up then. My boat has lids, so we stayed as dry as you could in a raining marsh. Then suddenly the birds were everywhere.

I had fun as I called in groups of 10-25 birds and tons of singles. Many of them would have been dead ducks if it were me and my buddies, but I had to make sure these ducks were in his face. Several times I caught him spacing out as I'd say, "out front, get ready.....take him...take him...ADAM SHOOT THAT DUCK!" His only reply, "huh?" I told him that I'm doing my part, I expected him to do his.

He saw the light... Next thing you know, a single drake gaddie comes in, and like a veteran, he raised up and hit it solidly on the first shot. However, the duck didn't fold up. As it flapped going down, I was about to tell him to hit it again, but he beat me to it. He shot it again, and this time it fell stone dead. The last duck of the day he shot with his very last shell. The day ended with a limit of birds and only one not recovered.

It was one of the best hunts I've ever been on, and I wasn't even allowed to shoot.

On the Missouri Waterfowl Association home page, there are image viewers for two of the youth hunts sponsored by the MWA. One is for the Westside chapter's youth hunt at Soggy Bottom. The other is for the Central chapter's youth hunt at Eagle Bluffs CA.

Well it was a typical trip to the BAJA.After flying all night to get there,
we end up hunting in one of the least productive holes on the BAJA.

After watching ducks flying into safe areas all morning and early afternoon
ducks finally start looking at our setup but still wouldnt work.
At this time my son starts getting restless and calling for an end to this madness.
I tell him just hang on we will leave when it gets dark.

Well about 3pm I decide I must get rid of the liquids my kidneys have been accumulating.
I am in the middle of this process and as usual a couple ducks decide to have a closer look
since I was away from my weapon and holding my gun.

They then decide they didnt like the looks of things and fly on out.
I then gather myself up and start heading back to my weapon and son.
Just as I reach my weapon I see this big ol'greenhead sailin in on my side locked and committed to lightin in our spread
I'm thinkin if I could just grab my weapon in time while I'm crawlin thru the mud
I may be able to kill my first duck in 37 yrs of chasing them.

As I grab my weapon while on my knees in the mud I tell my crew to kill it.
Just as I turn to shoot this avian beast,I slip and fall on my side in about 6 inches of water and mud
I see him straight out front of me.My son is the only other one in position to shoot
since the rest of the crew are laughing at the show I am putting on thinkin I must be rasslin with a big head carp.
Here I am wallowing like a Iowa hog on a hot August afternoon in a mud puddle,
Layin on my side completly I poke my weapon thru the brush and try to put the bead on him,Just as I pull the trigger
I hear the boys little 20 bark and watch this duck crumple as my shot sails past it harmlessly.

TATONKA shot his first duck!!
Guess I will have to have him show me how it's done.

I posted this in the spring but it is the best so far. We went out to the farm well before sunrise and I had scouted the birds for a couple nights and had a good idea where to start. We set up and heard several birds but long story short they hit the ground and went silent. We decided to stay on the food plot we were sitting hoping one would come along to feed a bit. I would fire up the call every now and then. Finally, a hen at the far end of the field got tired of hearing me make noise and decided to fire back. After exchanging words for a couple minutes she decided to come into the field and show me who was boss. She started towards us and about half way through the field three strutters appeared from the left. My boy about hyperventilated. They strutted in behind the ole girl putting on a good show. She got within about 5 yards of us and was looking hard as the strutters made their way closer and closer. I heard a little putt and told the boy to shoot the one in the middle. BOOM!! Floppin bird baby! After hugs and high fives we checked him out. Turned out to be a jake but he was a big jake (18.5 lbs.)! It was the best hunt of my lifetime and I think he enjoyed himself as well. Can't wait till this spring.

It's Not a Passion.
It's An Obsession.
"I got a shotgun a rifle and a 4-wheel drive and a country boy can survive"..........Hank Jr.

Well it started pretty much like it ended-no shot were fired-BUT
it was great just the same

I had my youngest out for his first hunt.Saturday
I had a spot all picked out and it was lookin good
We got out a few minutes late but figured there was enough
cloud cover to keep them on roost a few extra minutes
As we got to the last tree line before the spot I had picked
we looked across the field and there were 5 big toms struttin
right where I had picked for the ambush.
Andrew was in awe watchin them struttin around in the field
but the most exciting part was absent-NO GOBBLIN!
Needless to say there was no way to get around to them
so we watched them for about 20 minutes before they moved
enough to try and put the sneak on.
When we got moved around to where I thought they were headed
there was no sign of them anywhere.so we checked a couple other spots I had,
all full of sign but couldnt find a bird.

Yesterday mornin we got out there plenty early and decided to set up about 20 yds
from the spot I had picked because of the way they were moving the day before.
Well as it starts gettin light I give a few soft yelps and they go off.
First one then another one and finally a third all roosted in the same spot
As I try and coax them down then over to us We have hens all around.
Toms gobblin all over,but the first 3 that were gobblin decide to come see what was goin on here
They came over a little rise in the field about 60 yds out and it was SHOWTIME!!!-
BUT when they spotted the decoy it was like there was a wall they stood right there and strutted,gobbled ,double,triple gobbles
then There was a hen right behind us that was mad as hell that some other hen was there but the Toms still wouldnt budge
They put on a show that I will never forget for about a half hour,
About that time another hen walks across the field behind them and heads to the river
Well they start to follow her but then decide to keep courtin the decoy,now they are right out in the open at about the same distance
Andrew and I were both amazed watchin them strut in unison like the rocketts,all fanned and turnin those circles showin off together
But the best was when they all came out of strut together and gobbled at the same time while lookin right at us at least 10 times
They did this for another 30 minutes then moved over to the woods along the river and were joined by another tom
As we were waiting for them to move just a bit so we could back out of our position to get in front of them
a herd of road goats decided to take up residence right in front of us so we didnt move till they did-by that time it was too late to try and get to the Toms
Even though not a shot was fired,Andrew was totally amazed at what he saw.
He never before asked to go out hunting but after this experience he is hooked and is ready to go out for the reg. season.
Only one thing that was missing was a camera to take some pics of the show-but the camcorder will be with me in the woods next time I dont care what momma sez

opening mourning of the 06 youth season I had the privalige of take a 14 year old boy who had never been spring chicken hunting. the started out good but went to bad then to great. First light we had abou 15 birds chattering ALOT. I had never head the birds gobble like this before. birds where from 150 to 600 or so yards away. We had birds everywhere. At first they sounded as if they was going to come right in to us, after an hour we had yet to even see a bird. Oh they didn't stop gobbling, they just quit getting closer. So we grabbed the decoys and headed for them. We moved about 150 yrds to a cove in the timber. we got all set up next to a couple of big trees and I started calling. Instantly what I thought was a pair of toms gobbled not 100 yrds away. they continued to gobble and I continued to call. It took them about 20 minutes or so to move into view. we watched what seemed to be a 10 minute 20 yard strutting show of three mature toms. ya three, what I thought was a pair was actualy three mature toms. After letting his nevers settle I told him to pic one out and wait for him to put his head up. he nodded and give'em a heck cut'n'run GOBBLE GOBBLE BANG dead bird

I posted it already but figured I would add it up here. took the boy on his first dove hunt yesterday and it was the first time he had shot at anything besides a turkey. First confirmed was a dumb one that landed on a corn stalk about 10 yards in front of him and he blasted him. He shot 3 more all flying. We had a good time and he suprised me a little with his shooting. Next up will be ducks and geese.

It's Not a Passion.
It's An Obsession.
"I got a shotgun a rifle and a 4-wheel drive and a country boy can survive"..........Hank Jr.